Senate Republicans Balk at Supporting Trump

Senate Republicans are voting overwhelmingly against Trump policies.

It is no secret that world leaders do not have much faith in President Donald Trump to maintain a stable world order. Trump’s lack of experience and narcissistic manner is threatening America’s position as a world leader. The international community and lawmakers do not know what to make of Trump’s controversial messages. Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz) summed it up best, when he said, “The United States is losing credibility.” Republicans as well as Democrats are worried over Trump’s actions.

For example, during the campaign, Trump threatened to modify America’s agreement with NATO. When meeting with Allies, he gave no support to Article 5 of the NATO agreement which basically says that all members will defend each other if one is attacked. Senators ensured that our allies know that we support them, they voted to affirm American support for Article 5. This was a major hand slap for Trump, who later came out and said he supports Article 5.

The senate is making several moves that go contrary to Trumps bleatings. First of all, the senate voted overwhelmingly to strengthen sanctions against Russia. They also voted to allow congress to block any effort made by Trump to weaken the sanctions against Russia for meddling in the 2016 elections.

Strong supporters of Trump also voted for the measure. Senate Banking Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) referred to it as “applying a correct amount of pressure” on Russia that will “ensure Congress exerts proper oversight over the use of these powerful sanctions.”

The New York Times reported that ‘Republicans have been careful not to frame their foreign policy moves as a counterweight to the president, who has doled out insults to foreign leaders on Twitter, bailed out of international trade and climate accords and turned on Qatar, an important American ally, as a sponsor of terrorism.’

Trump’s new budget request would effectively dismantle the state department, and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) refused to have anything to do with it. Senators have started to meet with world leaders to assure them and to relieve the tensions Trump has created. John McCain, John Barraso (R-Wyoming) and Chris Coons (D-Delaware) recently went to Vietnam, where they heard from allies about how they feel about recent US actions.

“It’s a mixed bag,” Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said. However, there are growing concerns in Congress not just in terms of the military issues, but also of Trump’s desire to cancel major trade agreements. Let’s hope the Republicans stop playing politics and work for the good of the nation.